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Redemption	By : Cat_Eyes Category: +M through R > Miraculous LadyBug Views: 2815 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug. Miraculous Ladybug is the intellectual property of Thomas Astruc and released by Zag studios. No profit was made writing this story.

Chapter List
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Marinette was disappointed to see that Nadja had gone ahead with her story, but she had omitted the name of the school. That didn't stop other reporters from locating it though, and soon the press milled around, just far enough away to not be standing on school property.
The other students gladly took advantage of the situation, speaking on camera or into other recording devices, to get their fifteen minutes of fame. However, all they did was repeat the same hateful poison their parents had been dripping in their ears.
Disgusted, Marinette glared whenever the media turned to her, letting the full force of her loathing show. Alya would then grin apologetically and steer her away, citing some half-hearted excuse about poor health.
'What do you think you're doing, M? Those reporters are going to peg you as a Papillon sympathiser. If that happens, your life is over,' Alya hissed as she gently pushed Marinette into the locker room.
Marinette opened her locker and sorted her books. 'Of course I'm not a sympathiser. Don't be ridiculous.'
Alya sighed and turned to her own locker. 'I know that, but you know what they're like. They'll drag your name through the mud. It could ruin your whole life.'
'I don't care.'
'Even if it affected your parents?'
Marinette paused, then closed her locker and turned to face Alya. 'Then what do I do?'
Alya held her arms out in a helpless gesture. 'You stop trying to save Adrien. He's not worth it.'
Marinette's arms fell to her sides. 'I can't believe you just said that. How can you be so heartless?'
'Because he's enemy number one, Marinette,' Alya retorted, voice rising. 'You can't seriously be buying this penitent act. The moment you let your guard down, he'll stab you in the back.'
'Has it never occurred to you that he might be sincere? He knows what he did was wrong - '
'Which he would still be doing if Ladybug hadn't stopped him. He's only sorry he got caught.'
'No,' said a quiet voice from the doorway.
Marinette and Alya jumped, before turning to Adrien with guilty expressions.
'I am sorry for the harm I caused, but I don't expect you to believe that.'
Marinette and Alya watched silently as Adrien opened his locker, placed some books inside, and closed it again. He had already turned toward the door when he stopped, barely looking over his shoulder, to speak to Marinette. 'I appreciate you trying, but your friend is right. It would be better for you if you stayed away from me.' He hefted his bag and walked out, Marinette staring sadly after him.

Marinette spent her lunch break on Thursday minding the shop while Tom and Sabine both worked on a large rush order. It was unusually quiet, their regular customers put off by the thongs of media camped out around the neighbourhood as they waited to catch a glimpse of Adrien. Marinette scowled as a news crew set up a tripod and camera just outside the bakery door.
'Still at it, I see,' Tom observed, curiously sticking his head out of the kitchen door at the ruckus.
'Vultures,' Marinette growled.
Tom raised an eyebrow. 'They're only doing their job.'
Marinette crossed her arms. 'Harassing people is not a job,' she pouted, mulishly.
Tom was about to say more, but just then, the tripod holding the camera tipped and collided with the door.
Marinette's scowl deepened, her arms went rigid at her sides and her fists clenched. Straightening up to her full height, she marched to the door and threw it open to glare at the news crew. They stared back with awkward, apologetic smiles, the cameraman still stooped over with his camera in his arms.
'Sorry,' began the journalist, 'we can pay for any - '
'Get out of here,' Marinette shrieked.
The crew gaped at her with wide eyes.
'I said, leave. No one wants you here, you scavengers. Now get lost, before I call the police.'
'Now, see here, Miss,' the newsreader began, taking on a look of slighted superiority.
'You go, or I get the hose,' Marinette threatened.
'Dude, let's just go. We'll get the shot from another angle,' said the cameraman, as he regarded Marinette coolly from the corner of his eye.
With a sniff, the journalist gathered his dignity and followed the cameraman back to their van. Marinette stayed where she was until they were out of sight.
Tom and Sabine waited for her by the front counter, both with their arms folded and wearing twin expressions of disapproval.
'I raised you better than that,' Sabine chided.
Marinette hung her head and wrapped her arms around herself. 'They were scaring away our customers, and they almost broke the glass.'
'Things that can be easily remedied, Marinette. What's this really about?' Tom asked.
Marinette felt her frustration bubble up as it sought release. 'It's not right,' she grated.
Sabine cocked her head. 'What's not right?'
'What they're doing,' Marinette blurted. 'The media, the public, all of them. Papillon was stopped and sent to prison, and the court made its decision regarding Adrien. He's sorry for what he did, but people still treat him horribly. Then, he just stands there and takes it.'
Sabine took hold of Marinette's shoulders and looked her in the eyes. 'People were scared for a long time. What Papillon and Chat Noir did was inexcusable.'
Marinette stepped back, wrenching out of Sabine's grip. 'So what, we don't give them a second chance? We hold a grudge and refuse to help them move on from their mistakes? Are we going to punish Adrien for the rest of his life? He's hurting enough already, and this attitude is not going to help him grow into a better person. Your attitude, and others like you, is only going to make things worse. We should give him a chance, not treat him like a monster.'
Tom shook his head. 'That naivety will only get you hurt. Imagine what Ladybug would say if she knew you had so casually dismissed all of her hard work in bringing those two down.'
'I think I'd say good on me for learning to forgive my enemies,' Marinette shouted.
'What?' Tom asked, faintly.
Marinette gasped and clapped her hands over her mouth.
'Marinette, you're Ladybug?' Sabine's face was white and her hands trembled.
Marinette hung her head and rubbed the back of her neck. 'Yeah, I was.'
Tom and Sabine were both quiet for a long moment as they stared.
'You were Ladybug,' Tom repeated, slowly, as if he needed to say it for it to sink in.
Marinette nodded.
'How?' Sabine whispered. 'How did it happen? How did I not notice?'
'It does explain a lot, though,' Tom drawled, thoughtfully.
Sabine let out a pained sigh. 'The unexplained absences.'
'The voices in her room,' Tom added, before turning a sharp eye on Marinette. 'Voices?'
Marinette winced. 'I had a, uh, partner. He was called Guardian, but his presence in the city was a secret. That's why he was never seen with me. I spoke to him on my yoyo, mostly. It doubled as a communicator,' she explained when they looked at her in confusion.
'There was also that constant exhaustion and oversleeping, but it's hard to tell whether that was because of Ladybug, or if it's just because it's you,' Sabine teased.
'Honey, why didn't you tell us this sooner? It's been months,' Tom asked.
Marinette shrugged. 'It didn't seem relevant anymore. Papillon and Chat Noir were no longer a threat, but by then, I was so used to keeping my identity a secret, I just didn't think it was important.'
Tom stroked his moustache. 'Which begs the question, Papillon's and Chat Noir's powers. What happened to them?'
'I don't know,' she confessed. 'I didn't take them, so I can only assume the Guardian has them.'
'So, they had a miraculous, too?' Sabine was intrigued.
Marinette nodded. 'The brooch of the Butterfly, and the ring of the Black Cat.'
'How many are there?' Sabine continued.
Marinette hunched her shoulders. 'Sorry, Maman, but that is strictly confidential. All I can say is that the miraculous, and the Guardian, are no longer in France.'
Sabine looked thoughtful. 'Can we tell people about you?'
Marinette shook her head firmly. 'I'd rather you didn't. I don't want the authorities breathing down my neck, demanding to know where the miraculous are, or who has them. I also don't want the press to harass me the way they have Adrien, either.'
Tom and Sabine exchanged a look.
'You really think he's worth a second chance?' Tom queried.
Marinette nodded. 'I do.'
'Then, we trust your judgement,' Sabine relented, with a small smile.
Tom ruffled her hair. 'You've always been a good judge of character. We'd look pretty silly if we didn't believe you now.'
'Thank you, Maman, Papa,' Marinette murmured as Tom pulled her and Sabine into a hug.
'So,' Sabine said, brusquely, when Tom released her. 'How is Ladybug going to fight this latest injustice?'
Marinette bit her lip. 'I'd like to start by asking to visit his place, if he'll let me.'
Tom raised an eyebrow. 'What if he doesn't?'
Marinette cringed. 'Ask if he'd like to visit us,' she replied, the upward inflection making it sound like a question.
Tom's and Sabine's smiles turned brittle.
'We did just say we trust her judgement,' Sabine muttered from the corner of her mouth.
'We did, indeed,' Tom replied, sweat beading his forehead.
'So, I can?' asked Marinette, eyes wide and hopeful.
'Yes, Dear,' they agreed in unison, shoulders sagging in defeat.
Marinette hopped in place and clapped her hands. ' Thank you, thank you, thank you. I really appreciate this, and I'm sure it'll do Adrien a world of good. I think he could use a positive influence in his life.'
Tom and Sabine smiled warmly back.
'You'd better get back to school, your lunch break is almost over,' Sabine pointed out. 'We have to get back to the kitchen,' she told Tom. 'All that bread isn't going to bake itself, and you, young lady. I would like the full story once you get home.'
Marinette retrieved her bag from behind the counter and kissed them both on the cheek. 'Yes, Maman. See you later,' she called as she ran out the door.

Marinette entered the school with a spring in her step and determination fizzing in her chest. She found Mylene, Alix, Rose, and Juleka sitting on one of the stairways, and joined their conversation.
'He's been so sad, lately. I wish there was a way to cheer him up,' Rose lamented.
Alix waved a hand dismissively. 'He'll get over it.'
Mylene regarded Alix reproachfully. 'Don't be so cold. Chloe was Kim's first crush, of course he's missing her.'
They all sighed.
'Is it weird that I actually, kind of, miss her?' Alix asked.
Juleka shrugged, 'I don't miss her, per se, but I do feel bad for Sabrina.' She nodded to where Sabrina huddled on a bench, her chin resting on her knees.
'Yeah, Sabrina was actually tolerable when Chloe wasn't around,' Mylene added. 'But now, she just seems lost.'
'Maybe we could invite her over?' suggested Marinette.
Rose hung her head. 'I already did. She wants to be left alone.'
A hush fell over the courtyard. Turning, Marinette saw Adrien enter the school, with his head low and shoulders hunched. Marinette watched him for a moment, considering, then took a step toward him. A sharp yank on her collar prevented her from getting any further.
'Where do you think you're going?' Alya muttered in her ear.
Marinette yelped. 'Where did you come from?'
Alya waved vaguely with one hand, as the other released its hold on Marinette's collar. 'Over there. Now, answer my question.'
Marinette glanced around. Seeing the other girls engaged in a new conversation, she dragged Alya out of earshot to explain. 'Look, I know how you feel about Adrien, but I believe the only way to move forward is to forgive him, or at least tolerate his presence.'
Alya raised an eyebrow and folded her arms.
'So,' Marinette continued, 'I'm going to ask to visit him.'
Alya's mouth fell open as her arms dropped. 'You can't be serious. Marinette, if you're seen with him, it'll be social suicide. Haven't you already risked yourself enough?'
'I don't care about that. But if I visit him, maybe people will see that he's not some deranged lunatic with questionable, animal-themed quirks.'
'Or you could prove that's exactly what he is. I'm worried for you, Girl.'
'I know you are, and I love you for it, but I'm going to try.' Marinette was adamant.
'What if he's dangerous?'
Marinette closed her eyes and took a deep breath. 'Alya, I need you to trust my judgement on this. My parents have already agreed to give him the benefit of the doubt. Could you do that for me, too, please?'
Alya fretted, torn between concern for Marinette's safety, wanting to be a supportive friend, and her instinctive mistrust of Adrien. 'Ok,' she acquiesced. 'I won't say anything against him, for now.'
Marinette released the breath she was holding. Smiling, she gave Alya a hug. 'Thank you, that's all I ask. I'm sure it'll be fine.'
The bell rang, and they all drifted back to class, Kim bemoaning the upcoming math test.
'Do you really think he'll let you visit?' Alya whispered as they sat down.
'I have no idea. If he doesn't like that option, I'll see if he wants to visit me.'
Marinette could see the panicked squawk travelling up from Alya's lungs, but Madame Mendeleiev called for silence as she handed out the test papers. Marinette stifled a chuckle, as Alya resembled a surprised pufferfish caught in a current.
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Redemption